American Airlines class action claims company discriminates against disabled employees

American Airlines class action overview: 

• Who: American Airlines is facing a class action lawsuit claiming it discriminates against employees with disabilities. 
• Why: American Airlines employees accrue absence points for missing work for any reason, including Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) reasons, and those points are later used to harm employees, the lawsuit claims.
• Where: The American Airlines disabled employees class action was filed in federal court in Texas.

A new class action lawsuit claims American Airlines discriminates against disabled employees who need to miss work.

The American Airlines class action alleges that employees accrue absence points when they miss work for any reason, and those points are used against them; even Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) absences are held against employees, the lawsuit claims.

The plaintiff is requesting damages for wages and emotional distress, compensatory damages and attorneys’ fees, along with interest and costs.

American Airlines employee claims FMLA absences counted against him

Lead plaintiff Edward Longobardi says American Airlines terminated him when it was no longer willing to let him miss work for medical reasons, which he says it had done for years.

Longobardi says during his nearly two decades of employment with American Airlines, he had to miss work multiple times due to complications from having HIV. He says he was never penalized for this until 2021, when he had to take an extended leave of absence for a hip surgery.

He says American Airlines first erroneously listed him as being absent without authorization during his surgery-related absence, then informed him upon his return in August that any future days of missed work would cause him to accrue absence points.

“Plaintiff’s accommodation, which provided virtually zero business hardship, which had been routinely approved for decades, had now suddenly vanished because Defendant would not break from the policy,” the American Airlines lawsuit says. “The policy, as applied, is completely inflexible and it is impossible for a disabled flight attendant to avoid adverse employment actions because of their disability.”

Longobardi received 13 absence points between Sept. 7 and Dec. 31, 2021.

“At the end of 2021, plaintiff sought an accommodation in the form of intermittent leaves as necessary,” the lawsuit claims. “Instead of engaging in any interactive process, defendant prohibited plaintiff from continuing his employment.”

Longobardi is not the only person to accuse American Airlines of discriminating against disabled workers. In September, Santrise Wilson filed a class action against the airline over claims that it violates the Americans with Disabilities Act by refusing to properly accommodate, and in some cases firing, employees with disabilities.

Have you been discriminated against due to a disability? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiff is represented by Scott J. Ferrell of Pacific Trial Attorneys APC.

The American Airlines class action lawsuit is Longobardi v. American Airlines Group Inc., Case No. 3:24-cv-00152-E, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.

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